


Welcome to the Planet

by WinchesterDaeva, xtremeroswellian



Series: Highway From Hell [1]
Category: Smallville, Supernatural
Genre: F/M, Fake Names, Gen, Justice League of America - Freeform, Poltergeists, Trust Issues, recruiting
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-28
Updated: 2020-04-28
Packaged: 2021-03-01 22:34:53
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 6,048
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23884594
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/WinchesterDaeva/pseuds/WinchesterDaeva, https://archiveofourown.org/users/xtremeroswellian/pseuds/xtremeroswellian
Summary: Spoilers: “No Rest for the Wicked" for Supernatural. Nothing terribly spoilery from Smallville if you watched any of sixth or seventh season.
Relationships: Chloe Sullivan & Dean Winchester, Chloe Sullivan & Oliver Queen, Chloe Sullivan & Sam Winchester, Dean Winchester & Sam Winchester
Series: Highway From Hell [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1721413





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Spoilers: “No Rest for the Wicked" for Supernatural. Nothing terribly spoilery from Smallville if you watched any of sixth or seventh season.

Sam Winchester sat stretched out in the passenger seat of the Impala, glancing over at his older brother as they headed toward Decatur, Illinois. "There's a lot of rumors about this town."

Dean raised his eyebrows. "Like?"

"Well, according to various legends, half the town was built right on top of a Native American cemetery."

"Please tell me we're not going to try to break another curse," he groaned.

He chuckled a little and looked out the windshield. "No. Poltergeist, remember?"

He shook his head. "Right."

"Current owner of the house is...Chloe Queen. Only lived there a few weeks." He glanced down at the file in his hands.

"And in those few weeks she's already noticed it?"

"Apparently it's gotten progressively more active over the years. The last owner only lived there six months and barely got out alive."

"Huh. Wow."

"So something's really pissed it off."

"Apparently."

Sam slid his gaze over to Dean, taking note of the disinterest in his tone and his expression.

He glanced over at his brother. "So where is this house again?"

He looked down at the driving directions he'd printed at the last library where they'd stopped. "Keep heading South until Wood Street. Then make a left on Union. It's the second house on the right."

He nodded turned onto the instructed streets and pulled up to a large house. Whistling, he cut the engine and exited the car. "Nice size."

Sam raised his eyebrows, wondering if this Chloe Queen was independently wealthy. He glanced around the street, taking note of a tall woman with a ponytail eyed them suspiciously as she carried a bag toward the building she was heading into. He offered her a nod and a smile, and watched as she disappeared into the building. His gaze shifted to the left and he winced a bit at the sign in front of the place. Dove, Inc. Domestic Violence shelter.

Dean nudged him, taking no notice of the building. "Come on."

Nodding, Sam followed him up the porch steps and to the front door, more than happy to let Dean take the lead.

Squaring his shoulders, Dean knocked and waited for an answer.

A moment later, a petite blonde woman opened the door. She couldn't have been more than twenty-five or twenty-six, and her green eyes appraised both of them cautiously. "Can I help you?"

"We're local surveyors looking for residential disturbances. We heard that this place was one for a lot of disturbances," he held his hand out. "I'm Chad Kroeger, this is my partner Ryan Peake."

For a moment, Sam could have sworn he saw a flash of amusement in the woman's eyes as she held her hand out to Dean and shook it. "Chloe Queen."

"So have there been any recent mishaps here?"

She hesitated a moment. "Define mishaps."

He shrugged. "Flickering lights, weird scratching noises...things falling unexpectedly."

Sam watched her intently as she shifted her gaze to him, giving him an uneasy smile.

He offered her a small, warm smile in return, hoping to calm her nerves. "We're just here to help."

Chloe drew in a breath. "Yeah. All of the above."

Dean nodded. "Has it seemed like your house has been out to kill you?"

Sam whipped his head over to look at him with horror.

He ignored Sam and waited for an answer.

She gazed at Dean a moment, then nodded slowly. "I've been trying to find someone to help me with this, but..."

"Don't worry about it. We can help."

She stepped back, holding the door open to let them in.

Stepping in, he waited for his brother before looking around. "Where does most of the activity take place?"

"The master bedroom." She bit her lip, tucking some blonde hair behind her ear.

"You might want to get out of the house," he advised.

"I'd rather stay," she said quietly, looking determined.

"This could get dangerous."

Sam couldn't believe they were standing there having this conversation with a woman they'd just met. "He's right."

"Go get the duffel," Dean instructed him, glancing up briefly.

He looked at his brother hesitantly.

"Go."

Drawing in a breath, he headed out to the car once more. He sure hoped Dean knew what he was doing.

* * *

Chloe kept her gaze fixed on 'Chad's' face, studying him intently. "What are you thinking it is? Evil spirit? Poltergeist?"

He shrugged. "More poltergeist than anything."

She nodded slightly.

He finally looked at her. "How'd you figure it'd be something like that?"

She met his eyes. "I've always been interested in the supernatural. Done a lot of reading."

"Reading."

"Well, when things start flying at my head and I'm the only person in the room...it tends to make me curious," she said wryly.

He smiled slightly. "I still want you to be out of here."

"I appreciate the concern," she said sincerely. "But I'd really like to stay. I'll keep out of the way."

He shook his head. "I'm not going to risk that."

Annoyance tugged at her but she did her best to suppress it. "I've been living here for weeks. I think I can handle whatever's about to go down."

Sam appeared at the door again at that moment, duffel bag in his hand.

Folding his arms, he stood firm. "You're leaving. Things are going to get bad in here."

It took everything in her not to scowl at him. "All right. How do you long think this will take?"

"Come back in an hour."

She arched an eyebrow. "An hour? That's it?" She looked between them.

He nodded. "That's it."

Chloe drew in a breath and picked her purse up off the kitchen table. "All right. I'll be back." She bit her lip as she headed out the door and off the porch, not looking back. She removed the ear bud from her purse and placed it in her ear. "All right, they're here," she muttered. "Let the show begin."

* * *

When Chloe left, Dean took the bag from Sam and began to rummage through it. "Did you get all the sacks ready?"

"Yeah, that's why it took me so long." He drew in a breath and pulled two of them from the duffel. He looked around the large kitchen.

Pulling out the other two, Dean followed his gaze. "You take north and west, I'll take south and east?"

"Be careful," he warned, heading toward the living room.

"You too."

Nodding, Sam disappeared.

Dean grabbed his sawed-off from the bag as well, then walked in the other direction, tense and waiting for the poltergeist to make its presence known.

* * *

Chloe sat in her car across the street in the First Lutheran Church's parking lot, leaning back in her seat and keeping her eyes locked on her laptop's screen. She watched on a split screen as the two men separated and moved to different parts of the house, the older one heading up the stairs toward the master bedroom. She pressed her ear bud a little closer. "You getting this, Arrow?"

In New York, Oliver Queen stared intently at his own screens. "Feed is coming through crystal clear, Watchtower. Good job."

She nodded slightly, flickering her gaze to the younger of the two men and watching as he pulled a crowbar from the bag. She raised her eyebrows a little, curious.

Queen leaned forward and studied him intently. "I didn't think demon hunters needed crowbars."

Chloe didn't respond, watching with interest as Sam swung the weapon and made a small hole in the wall near the bottom, then dropped a little bag inside the hole. "Huh."

"Interesting," he murmured.

No sooner had the word left his mouth, then all hell broke loose.

* * *

Sam ducked just in time as a lamp flew at his head, shattering on the wall above him. "Crap."

Dean spun on his heel after dropping his own bag and hearing the crash. "Sam?"

"I'm all right, just hurry!" he shouted, moving quickly toward the opposite end of the house.

At that confirmation, he sprinted through the house dodging various flying objects aimed at his head. Finally reaching his end of the house, he quickly put a hole in the wall and all but threw the bag in.

Sam did the same seconds later and the things that were floating mid-air crashed to the floor loudly, shattering to pieces.

Once everything had settled, Dean called out. "You okay dude?"

He raked a hand through his shaggy hair, grimacing as flakes of glass stuck to his hand. He quickly wiped it on his jeans. "Yeah, I'm good. You all right?"

"Yeah. Fine."

He looked around at the mess surrounding him on the floor. "Damn."

* * *

Chloe sat back in her seat, faint smile on her face. "Well?"

Oliver folded his arms. "Impressive. Quick and efficient."

"Does that mean I'm moving onto phase two?"

He grinned. "Phase two is a go."

"Wish me luck."

"You won't need it, Watchtower."

A faint smile touched her lips. "I'll be in touch." She pulled the ear bud from her ear and tucked it back into her purse, sitting and waiting for a little while before heading up to the house once more. She was more than a little surprised to find the younger man disposing of the broken glass into the trash can.

Dean jumped when she opened the door. "Hey...sorry about the mess."

"Poltergeist is gone?" She raised her eyebrows.

He nodded. "All taken care of."

Chloe smiled, though a little nervousness tugged at her as she looked between them. "Wow, that's impressive. Let me take you guys out to eat."

"Er, no thanks. We're good," Dean said quickly.

"Please?" Her voice was soft, hopeful. "There's a little diner just a few blocks from here that has the best hamburgers within three hundred miles. My treat."

He looked at her suspiciously. "We've eaten already."

Her smile slipped and she looked down at the floor. "Oh."

Sam gave his brother a look. "We'd be glad to join you for a bite."

"Really?" She looked at him with surprise.

He nodded. "Ignore Chad. He's in a bit of a mood."

"Well, angry poltergeists trying to kill you will do that." She smiled at him.

He gave a half smile. "Yeah."

"Let me just...go change clothes and I'll be back down." She headed toward the stairs.

"I can't believe you just did that," Dean growled.

"Relax," Sam murmured, watching her go.

"We don't even know her, Sam!"

He gave his brother a look. "Since when do you turn down offers from pretty blondes?"

He opened his mouth to respond, then shut it again, realizing that he couldn't answer him.

"It'll be fine. It's just lunch. And she seems lonely."

"Whatever," he mumbled.

Chloe returned a few moments later, wearing a pair of black slacks and a pretty button-down green blouse that matched her eyes.

Dean gave her a once-over, before turning and walking out the door. "Lead the way."

* * *

Thirty minutes later, the three of them were seated in a booth at Culver's, the two men across from her. She ordered a coffee for her and told them to get whatever they wanted. She couldn't actually afford to buy extravagant lunches, but when she was on assignment, she was reimbursed for everything--meals included. She watched as they looked over the menus, finding herself intrigued by the pair.

Dean was the first to put his menu down. "I think I'll just have coffee."

Chloe offered him a small smile and waited for Sam, taking note of the suspicious way 'Chad' was staring at her.

Sighing, Sam put his menu down. "Coffee's good for me too."

The waitress returned moments later with three cups of coffee, then disappeared once more. Chloe watched her go, then forced herself to take a deep breath, wrapping her hands around the warm mug. "I have something to tell you." There was a hint of hesitance in her voice.

Dean tensed at her words, but stayed quiet.

"My name isn't Chloe Queen," she confessed, watching the confusion flicker over Sam's expression.

"Okay, then what is it?" Dean folded his arms.

"Chloe Sullivan," she answered, meeting his eyes for a moment.

Sam's eyebrows furrowed a little. "Why do I know that name?"

"Newspaper editor," Dean responded.

It was her turn to be surprised. "Well, not exactly, but--"

He shook his head. "Then you know who we really are."

She nodded a little, taking a sip of her coffee. "I know that you're not the lead singer of Nickelback," she said with a tiny smile.

He smirked. "So you know your music."

Chloe shrugged. "Not really the point."

"What...is the point?" Sam asked uncertainly, glancing sideways at Dean.

"That's what I'd like to know."

She was quiet for a moment, then she set her mug down on the table and leaned forward a little. "I was sent here to see how the two of you operate. To see if--"

Dean's hand shot to the gun he always carried with him. "How we operate? What? So you could kill us?"

She quickly sat back once more, her eyes wide. "What? No! Of course not."

"You're lying," his voice was low.

"I wasn't sent here to kill you," she said, shaking her head in disbelief and lowering her voice. "I was sent here to _recruit_ you."

"Sam, we're leaving. Now."

Sam looked at her in confusion, then at him, shaking his head just a little. "Recruit us for what exactly?"

"That's what I've been trying to explain. Five minutes. That's all I ask. Please." Her voice was soft.

Dean sat back. "Five minutes."

She relaxed a little, nodding. "I work for a group of individuals that are interested in having you join them because of your skills. The hunting evil, killing demons, getting rid of poltergeists skills."

"I thought you worked for a newspaper." Sam's eyebrows furrowed even more.

"I do. But that's just my day job," she said quietly.

"Okay, and who exactly are the group of individuals you work for?"

She shifted her gaze to Dean. "Have you heard of the Justice League of America?"

"Sort of. League of supposed superheroes, right?"

Chloe nodded slightly.

He raised an eyebrow. "You _work_ for them?"

"I do," she admitted.

He was still skeptical. "And they want us on their team."

A faint smile touched her lips. "Yeah. See, the JLA has a good team, but...we want all our bases covered. And frankly, no one knows much about the more...uh, paranormal side of things. Which is where you come in."

"You know there are other hunters that would be better for the job."

"Not from the research I've done," she said quietly.

He shook his head. "You should look harder then."

"I have." She leaned forward a little. "I've been looking into this for almost two years now."

"Well, at least you know how to research."

Her lips drew into a thin line. She was getting tired of his attitude. "I'm very good at my job. Both of them," she said tensely.

"Dean." Sam nudged him a little, frowning.

He narrowed his eyes. "Good for you."

Chloe forced herself to take a deep breath. She reached into her purse and pulled out a couple of business cards. "Here." She slid them across the table. "Think about it. Give me a call." She put some money on the table. "My five minutes are up." She rose to her feet.

Dean pushed them toward his brother. "Here you go Sam."

"Dude, stop," he said, shaking his head and looking up at Chloe. "Look--"

"Sam. Just...think about it," she said quietly. Without waiting for a response, she headed away without looking back.

"Let’s go," Dean grumbled.

Sam rose to his feet slowly, picking up the cards off the table, then heading for the exit as he tucked them into his pocket.

Dean stood after him, sliding his hands into his pockets and looking around the diner.

"That was weird," he murmured, leading the way out to the Impala.

"Very."

He glanced at his brother as he climbed into the passenger seat.

Dean climbed in as well. "I think it's time to do some research."

"On the Justice League?"

"And on Chloe."

Sam drew in a breath, feeling a little uneasy. "Yeah, you're probably right. But my gut tells me she's on the up and up."

"I ain't gonna trust a gut instinct this time."

The tone of Dean's voice made him a little more uneasy and he looked at him sideways. "Right, okay. We'll research, see what we can come up with."

Nodding, he turned the car on and sped away, off to the nearest library.


	2. Chapter 2

Three hours later, Sam sat in front of the library computer, fascinated. "Dude. She won a Pulitzer a year ago."

Dean glanced over at him. "Really?"

He nodded, small smile on his face. "Yeah. She wrote an expose on Lex Luthor's crimes against humanity."

"Huh. Nice."

"Find anything on the JLA?"

He shook his head. "Nothing we don't already know."

"Not surprising. They probably make it a point to stay out of the news."

Sighing, he closed the browser. "Yeah."

"Well, here's what I've dug up on Chloe." He motioned to the pages he'd printed out.

Dean took the pages and began to read them over. "She reports on all things...weird...in Smallville?"

"Reported. Past tense. You were right. She was the editor of a newspaper--her high school newspaper. But..." He reached out and handed him a second stack of pages. "She's now apparently living in Metropolis, Kansas, writing for the Daily Planet."

"Writing from the pit," he flipped through the pages.

"Yeah. And yet she got a Pulitzer. She was also fired from the Planet once, for insubordination. And guess who owned the paper then."

"Lex Luthor?"

"Got it in one."

"Sam, I don't know."

"I don't either," he admitted, sitting back in his chair. "From everything I've read, Chloe seems like she's trustworthy. But..."

"There's not enough on this league she works for."

He sighed softly. "Yeah. Plus, we don't know what she knows about us."

"Exactly."

"I think we should talk to her again and least find out that much."

Dean sat back in his own chair and pinched the bridge of his nose. "I don't know if that's the smartest thing to do."

"You all right?" There was concern in Sam's voice.

"Yeah," he sighed. "I'm fine."

"You got a headache? We could go back to the Motel."

He dropped his hand. "I'm fine, Sam."

"Right," he murmured, not believing him anymore now than he had the past few weeks since Dean had been back.

"Lets try to dig up more on this league before we even think about talking to her again, okay?"

Sam drew in a breath. "Yeah. Yeah, all right."

He smiled. "Atta boy, Sammy."

He managed a faint smile in return. But it was forced. Dean wasn't the same, and he wouldn't talk to him about what was going on or what had happened to him.

He hoped his brother would open up soon before it ate him from the inside out.

* * *

Chloe sighed softly and picked her cell phone off the table, noting Oliver's number on the caller ID. She pressed it to her ear. "Hello?"

"A little computer birdie is telling me that someone is trying to hack into our data base..."

She sat up a little more. "You think it's--"

"It is," he stated matter-of-factly. "They're doing it from the library."

Chloe sighed softly. "Well, does it really surprise you? There isn't that much information out there on the League and they're not exactly the most trusting individuals.”

"Yeah. I figured that would happen," he smiled. "This gives you an opportunity."

She groaned inwardly. "Meaning you want me to go over there and confront them."

"Just tell them the police are on their way and you're the only one that can help them."

"What?" There was alarm in her voice.

"Chloe, it's the only way you'll earn their trust."

"They might end up trusting me but if they think the League called the cops on them, they're not gonna trust the League," she pointed out.

"That's when you explain that the League's security system is high and sensitive."

She gritted her teeth at his easy tone. "Great. Thanks." She hung up her phone and quickly headed out of the house and to her car, hurrying. She just hoped she could get there before the police.

***

Dean leaned over Sam's shoulder. "How close are you?"

"I think I'm almost in," he murmured, focusing entirely on the task at hand and not even noticing as Chloe approached.

"Log off right now and come with me," she ordered as she stood between them.

"What?" He turned to her. "Hell no, go away."

She leaned her head down and glared at Dean. "Do you have _any_ idea how high the JLA's security system is? It knows you're hacking into the system. Backup's already been called."

"Backup?" Sam echoed.

"Police. FBI. Possibly CIA. We have to move now."

"Damn it," he growled. "Come on Sam."

She straightened and turned to look toward the entrance of the library where a team of police officers were heading inside and looking right at them. "Shit," she said under her breath. "Don't move."

Both froze, waiting for further instruction.

She drew in a breath and waited as the officers walked over to them, taking note of all the people who'd been milling around and were now staring at the three of them with curiosity. Great. She offered the squad leader a small smile. "Officer."

The man nodded to her. "Ma'am."

"I know why you're here." She kept her voice quiet so passerby's didn't hear what was going on.

He folded his arms. "Enlighten me."

"Security breach of the Justice League of America's database. Code 6.5738210 B," she said without hesitation.

He looked at her with surprise. "And you would be...?"

She lifted her chin just a little. "Chloe Sullivan, communications specialist for the JLA. Password of the day is 65-12 Flash."

He nodded. "Yes, Miss Sullivan. Do you know the source of this breach?"

"Yes. My fault. They're helping me on a project and I gave them the wrong password."

"Right. As long as the situation is under control..."

"Under control, Officer. I'll be sure and let the board know how quickly your department responded. They'll be pleased." She gave him a smile.

"Alright," he tipped his hat. "Have a good day Miss Sullivan."

"Thank you. You too." She watched as he and the other officers headed away, then shut her eyes for a moment.

Dean looked at his brother. "Smooth talker."

Sam was staring at her with something akin to awe. "That was..."

She turned to face them, not looking very happy. "Trouble," she answered.

"Looks like you handled it pretty well," Dean folded his arms.

She glanced around the crowded room. "Yeah, except God only knows who was listening and now knows who I am," she mumbled. "I gotta make a call." She turned and headed toward the exit, looking uneasy.

He rolled his eyes watching her go. "Dramatics."

Sam glanced at him. "Not necessarily," he murmured. "She did just blow her cover. People know her name, Dean."

"Well maybe if the damn League would put out a little more information on themselves, this wouldn't be so difficult."

"I think we should follow her." Sam grabbed the stack of papers and headed toward the exit.

Shaking his head, Dean followed, muttering under his breath the whole way.

Chloe pressed her cell phone to her ear as she headed to her car, looking around the library parking lot nervously. "You need to change the security code for the day right now and I'm pretty sure my cover's blown here."

"It's already done. A jet will be there in a half hour to pick you up," Oliver replied.

"I'll head to the airport." She flipped her phone shut and slid it into her purse.

The boys caught up with her moments later.

She turned to face them. "You guys need to split. You have my cards, right?" Her voice was even but the look in her eyes was fearful.

Sam nodded. "Yeah, we have them."

"Call me. I think--" She caught sight of movement out of the corner of her eye and saw the man pull the gun from his jacket. "Get down!"

They ducked as a couple of shots rang out. Dean pulled his gun out and searched for the man, determined to return fire.

A second shooter opened fire from the opposite side of the parking lot and Chloe grimaced as a bullet grazed her shoulder. She dropped to the pavement, covering her head with her arms as glass shattered from above.

Dean let off his own shots at the man on the roof. "Jesus! Who are these people?"

"People who don't like the JLA," she said grimly.

When the gunfire ceased, Dean put his gun down slowly and glanced toward his brother. His eyes widened when he found him crumpled on the ground. "Sam!"

"Oh God," Chloe whispered as she looked over at him, taking in the sight of all the blood. She quickly moved over to his side, cringing when another shot rang out somewhere behind them.

Dean lifted Sam's upper body to him and looked down at the bullet wound, close to his heart. "Oh Sammy."

"Dean. Listen to me." Chloe reached out and put a hand on his arm. "We're still being shot at. Cover me!"

He didn't respond to her. "God dammit Sam, I did not go to hell for it to end this way."

She flinched as a bullet shattered her windshield. "Dean! I can help him!"

He slowly looked up at her. "You can?"

"Yes." She met his eyes for a brief moment, then lowered her gaze to the bullet wound in Sam's chest. "Cover me," she murmured, shifting closer to the brothers and resting a hand lightly against the younger man's heart.

Dean nodded numbly and drew his gun up, shooting in the direction the current bullets were coming from.

Within seconds she became unaware of what was going on around her, her eyes focused intently on Sam, a faint green light illuminating from her hand over his wound.

He couldn't help but stare at the light, half fascinated, but half-terrified that he'd lost his little brother again.

She drew in a shuddering breath, her hand falling away as Sam slowly began to sit up.

"Sam," relief flooded through the older Winchester. "Thank God."

"What happened?" He looked down at the bullet hole in his shirt, the blood staining it. His skin was perfectly in tact.

"One of these bastards shot you."

"But...I'm fine..." He looked around at the fallen men, heard the sound of sirens drawing closer, confusion settling onto his face.

Dean grabbed his shoulder and pulled him to his feet. "I'll explain later."

"Yeah, we need to--" He looked down and caught sight of Chloe slumped onto the ground, eyes shut. "Oh God."

"Get her," Dean kept his gun low. "We need to go now."

Sam didn't hesitate leaning down and carefully scooping her into his arms, turning to head for the Impala. "She's bleeding," he whispered, crawling into the backseat and cradling her on his lap.

"Where?" Dean didn't look back as he peeled out of the parking lot.

"Shoulder." He hesitantly moved the material of her shirt away enough to look. "I think she was just grazed."

"Good," he murmured.

Sam started to reply when a faint green glow emanated from her skin and the small wound closed up. "Holy crap."

"What is it?" He looked in the rearview mirror.

He met his brother's eyes in the mirror. "The wound just vanished," he whispered.

"Wow."

"Yeah. Wow," he echoed, dropping his gaze to look down at her once more. Her face was completely drained of color, her breathing steady albeit much slower than normal, and her body was limp like a rag doll. "Let's get her back to the Motel."

He nodded. "That's where I was headed."

Sam swallowed hard, wondering what the hell they'd stumbled onto this time.

* * *

Sam sat in a chair at the table in their motel room, staring at Chloe's unconscious form on the bed. "What happened, Dean?"

Dean tore his gaze from her and looked at his brother. "You got shot."

He opened his mouth to respond, then shut it again, rubbing the back of his neck. "Are you saying...she somehow healed me? Because I'm fine. There's not a scratch on me."

Dean nodded. "I thought I'd lost you again."

"How's this even possible?" he murmured, his mind flashing back to the faith healer he'd once taken Dean to see. "Do you think she's made some black magic deal with a reaper?"

"That's not it," he mumbled, turning back to her. "I think she has...powers."

Sam slowly rose to his feet. "Powers like...mine? From the demon?" His voice was quiet, hint of alarm behind the words.

"Now that I'm not sure of."

He ran a hand over his face. "Well, what do we do, Dean?"

"Get that card out and call her people," he let out a breath. "They need to know she's hurt."

"Right, yeah, okay." He pulled the card from his jeans pocket and turned his back toward them as he moved to use the telephone.

"Sam."

"Yeah?" He glanced at Dean, a little dazed.

He pulled out his cell phone. "Use this in case the phone lines are being watched."

Sam reached out and took Dean's phone, heading for the bathroom to make the call. "Good idea."

Dean nodded a little.

He disappeared inside, shutting the door behind him.

When the door shut, Dean stood and made his way over to the bed and sat on the opposite one, staring at Chloe.

Her breathing was a little uneven, her chest rising and falling a little too quickly.

He grimaced at the state she was in and moved to her bed and put his hand on her arm.

For a moment her breathing hitched and her head turned to one side.

He frowned. "Chloe?"

She slowly opened her eyes for a second, a soft groan escaping her. "Clark?" she murmured.

"Sorry, not your boyfriend."

Her eyes drifted shut once more.

Letting out a breath, he shifted. "Thank you for...saving my brother."

"So...he's okay?" she murmured, her voice barely audible.

"Yeah thanks to you."

She nodded slightly, wincing a little and pressing a hand against her stomach. "Good."

"How are you doing?"

"Tired," she whispered.

"You sleep. The league should be here soon for you."

At the mention of the league, she grimaced and pressed her hands against the bedding, struggling to sit up. "What...time is it?"

He glanced at the clock. "Almost six."

"I gotta get to the airport." The room spun as she managed to sit up straight.

"Whoa," he stopped her. "You're not going anywhere."

"They were sending a jet for me--"

"And Sam's taking care of it."

Her eyebrows furrowed, her green eyes glassy with exhaustion. "What do you mean?"

"He's calling them right now to tell them you're hurt."

A soft groan escaped her and she laid back in bed, pressing a hand to her face.

"Look, they'll probably be here soon. So rest and they'll be here before you know it," he gave her a slight smile.

"Okay?"

"Sooner than you think," she whispered inaudibly.

He furrowed his eyebrows. "What do you--"

At that moment, there was a knock on the motel room door.

Dean stood slowly, drawing his gun from his waistband. "Who's there?"

"Bart Allen. I'm here to pick up Chloe Sullivan."

"I'm afraid I don't know the name, dude."

"It's okay," she murmured from her prone position on the bed. "I know him. He's a friend."

He lowered the gun a little and opened the door.

"Hey, Chlolicious." There was concern in Bart's voice as he moved past Dean without so much as a greeting and headed to her side.

She managed a tiny smile. "Was afraid it'd be Clark," she whispered.

Bart shook his head. "He's off in his own little world again."

Meaning off somewhere with Lois, she thought tiredly, slowly opening her eyes. "Bart...this is Dean Winchester. Dean, Bart Allen."

Dean nodded. "Hi."

Bart regarded him with a cautious smile. "Hey. Thanks for watching after her."

"No problem."

"You ready?" he asked quietly, sitting down on the bed beside her.

"I think so. Wait." She looked toward the bathroom. "I wanna tell Sam goodbye."

Dean turned toward the bathroom. "Sammy, quit lurking and get out here!"

Chloe sat up slowly, eyes drooping as she watched Sam emerge from the bathroom, cell phone still pressed to his ear. He hung up a moment later, his gaze locking on her. "I'm heading out. It was good to meet you."

He smiled. "Thanks for saving my life. I owe you."

She shook her head a little. "Just...think about what we talked about, okay?" Her voice was quiet.

He nodded before his brother could speak. "We will."

She offered him a small smile and braced herself as Bart wound his arms around her and lifted her off the bed.

"See ya around, guys." Bart smirked. And in the blink of an eye, he and Chloe vanished from the room without a trace.

Dean blinked and turned to Sam. "What the hell was that?"

Sam stared, shock on his face. "Hell if I know."

* * *

"I don't know Sam. This just doesn't seem like our kind of thing." Dean sat down at the table in their room after a good bout of pacing.

Sam was silent for a moment, deep in thought. "Normally I'd agree, but..."

"But what?"

"I don't know, Dean. Maybe we need a change of pace." His voice was quiet.

"A change of pace?" he frowned. "Care to elaborate?"

"We've been doing this by ourselves for...a long time. Maybe these people could help us."

"Sam, these guys don't know anything about the supernatural. How exactly would they help?"

"People can be taught. And if they have super powers like Chloe said...think of all the good we could get done."

"No."

"I think we should meet them, Dean."

"They sent the cops after us. And you almost died," he resisted the urge to add on 'again'.

"Their security system is high-tech. And Chloe got us out of it." He paused. "And saved my life."

"And what about the next time it happens and she's not there?" he shook his head. "I won't risk that."

"I'm not saying we join up." He rose to his feet. "I'm just saying...let's meet them. See what they're about. I think it'd be a good thing to at least know who's out there." His voice dropped. "And I owe Chloe."

He sighed. "Okay. Make the call."

Sam nodded a little, knowing it was his last statement that made Dean agree. He pulled his cell phone out, and dialed the number on Chloe's business card, waiting for someone to pick up.

"This is Oliver."

Sam paused a second. "This is Sam Winchester. I'm calling for Chloe Sullivan."

He smiled. "Ah, Sam. I've been expecting your call. Chloe's out right now."

"Oh." He grimaced a little and glanced at his brother, not completely sure what to say.

"I'm guessing you're either calling for a meeting or turning down our offer."

Sam drew in a breath. "The first actually."

"Glad to hear that. I can have a jet out to you and your brother in a few hours."

"Oh, uh, no that's okay. We'd rather just drive."

He paused. "Are you sure?"

"Yeah, positive. Just need to know where we're going exactly."

"Metropolis, Kansas."

"We'll be there in a couple days," he said quietly, meeting Dean's eyes across the room.

"I look forward to meeting both of you."

Sam wished he could say the same, but he knew it wasn't for Dean and he wasn't sure it was for him, either. "See you then." He hung up the phone. "Metropolis, Kansas."

Dean nodded. "Then start packing."


End file.
